Maker of Dum Dum Pops ramps up social media

BRYAN, OH: Spangler Candy Company, which produces Dum Dum Pops, is ramping up its social media efforts with the recent hiring of Mattea St. John as e-commerce manager and a presence on Facebook, Flickr, and YouTube.

BRYAN, OH: Spangler Candy Company, which produces the lollipop candy Dum Dum Pops, is ramping up its social media efforts with the recent hiring of Mattea St. John as e-commerce manager and a presence on Facebook, Flickr, and YouTube.

"We're doing a little at a time and seeing if this is where our fans and customers are, and if this is how they want to interact with us," said St. John. She joined the company on May 18 and oversees social media, as well as e-commerce. "We're looking to engage our customers and create more brand recognition."

The company, which started getting involved with the three social networks over the past few months, will expand into other social media outlets, like Twitter and blogs, if it sees success. According to Jim Knight, VP of marketing for Spangler Candy Company, Spangler will determine success based on whether it can keep the sites updated with content and if consumers engage and provide feedback via social media.

"We're just trying to communicate a lot of things we have going on with Dum Dums, like new flavors - we rotate new flavors a lot - and special promotions that are going on, because we don't do a lot of TV advertising," said Knight. "And then we hope to receive feedback from our consumers, so we can continue to improve the product and keep it fun."